Paul Lambert has announced that he intends to leave Blackburn Rovers at the end of the season, and our Rovers regulars here in the Tavern aren’t too sure what to make of it.
The former Aston Villa manager has been in charge of Blackburn for less than a season and there are now reports linking him with the Celtic job.
Many of the fans lay the blame on the owner’s lack of passion for the club for Lambert’s exit, however with every departure comes an opportunity for another manager.
Already betting sites have started speculation on who might be the new manager of the one time Premier League champions.
With the club in an unstable condition financially, can the new manager do something that the previous managers haven’t done? And restore pride back into the once Premier League club.
Here are FIVE managers who could possibly take over next season at Ewood Park…..
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PRESS THE IMAGE BELOW TO SEE THE FIVE MANAGERS!
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Simon Grayson
The current Preston manager is already an early candidate to take over at Ewood Park next season.
The former Blackburn player has enjoyed his most successful moments in League One were he has promoted Blackpool, Leeds, Huddersfield and current team Preston. However this season he has managed to really show his worth with the North End team.
Preston currently sit 11th in the Championship, a position that many people believed Preston wouldn’t be in. While arguably Blackburn has a higher reputation than Preston, it would be a shock if Grayson would make the switch to a Lancashire rival.
Also given the fact that Preston are performing better than Blackburn right now he might see Blackburn as a club on the decline. Whereas Preston are a club starting to be on a rise again.
Alan Irvine
Irvine came in as the assistant manager to Lambert and may well take the job if he is offered it.
While Irvine is currently an assistant manager, he does have some managerial experience already. Alan Irvine had a brief spell as manager of West Brom in 2014. The former Baggies manager also was the Preston North End manager for two years as well as spending a year with Sheffield Wednesday.
Irvine will know the team very well given the fact he has already been working with them for most of the season. We do not know though if Irvine will want to stay following Lambert s exit or will he jump ship like the former Norwich Manager.
It does however look likely that Irvine may be the man taking centre stage again after some time behind the scenes.
Gary Bowyer
Yes, this is true. Currently Gary Bowyer is one of the favourites to come back to Blackburn after only being sacked this season.
The fact that Bowyer is being linked back with the club raises a few questions about the owners’ ambitions.
However maybe having another go might be what’s best for Blackburn.
Gary Bowyer certainly knows the team inside an out having only managed them 6 months ago and maybe an outside view of what has gone wrong might show Bowyer where improvements are needed.
Blackburn will certainly hope he improves his record if he is given a second try as the former Blackburn coach only had a 34 win percentage with Rovers.
It seems ludicrous to think that the man sacked due to poor performances just 6 months ago could be back in charge because Lambert has left. But anything really can happen in football.
Tim Sherwood
Tim Sherwood is hailed by Blackburn fans as one of the stand-out players in their Premier League winning campaign.
As a player he racked up 246 appearances for Rovers and seeing him in the managers dugout would be sure to lift the spirits of Ewood Park.
Sherwood has been linked with the Blackburn job on numerous occasions. The first dates back to 2012 were Tottenham rejected an approach from Blackburn for Sherwood (who was then the technical co-ordinator). Another was as recent as 2015 where he rejected the opportunity to manage Blackburn after Bowyer had been sacked.
However, after a rocky managerial career, Sherwood might reconsider and join Blackburn next season.
David Dunn
Dunn is the heavy favourite to take over the Blackburn job.
Having come up through the Blackburn Rovers youth the former Midfielder has accumulated over 300 appearances for Blackburn.
Despite leaving at the beginning of the season to join Oldham as a Player/Manager he has come back to the club, and is currently the Under 21’s assistant coach.
David Dunn is a figure who is highly respected by not just the fans but also the club and so maybe it’s time for him to take up a managerial role.
The major downside for Dunn is his lack of managerial experience.
Dunn’s only managerial job was at Oldham were he was sacked after less than a year due to poor results.
However putting Dunn in charge of a club he loves and respects may be beneficial to him and also the club.
